The Emmys’ In Memoriam segment was a moving affair on Monday night, paying tribute to late stars including Catherine O’Hara and Rob Reiner.
Noah Kahan performed Paul Simon’s Bridge Over Troubled Water during the special segment, which honours those who have died since the previous ceremony.
The In Memoriam also included Dolly Parton, Hayden Panettiere, James Van Der Beek and Eric Dane.
But, as with most years, Emmy viewers were quick to point out a series of notable omissions from the award show tribute.
Among those absent were Buffy the Vampire Slayer star Nicholas Brendon, who died of complications relating to cardiovascular disease in May, and Walker, Texas Ranger star Chuck Norris, who died at the age of 86 in March.
The omission of Brendon was particularly confusing to fans, given that Sarah Michelle Gellar and David Boreanaz appeared on stage together at the Emmy Awards.
Reacting to the moment online, Richard Newby wrote on X: ‘Having a Buffy reunion on stage and then leaving out Nicholas Brendon is crazy work.’
Fellow social media user John Singleton acknowledged Brendon’s struggles in the lead-up to his death, including substance abuse issues, writing: ‘Didn’t include Nicholas Brendon in memoriam. I’m aware he had demons. But that’s still f***ed up.’
Michelle Gellar and Boreanaz appeared to allude to Brendon, as well as their late co-stars Michelle Trachtenberg and Anthony Head, while presenting an award on stage.
Gellar said: ‘Before we move on to the award, David and I would like to acknowledge that it has been a tough two years for our beloved cast and crew.
‘We feel very lucky to have known and worked with such amazing people.’ Boreanaz, who played Buffy Summers’s vampire love interest Angel, replied, ‘Indeed.’
Several were also surprised at the exclusion of Norris, after his long-running TV work on the action show Walker, Texas Ranger.
David Hines commented on X: ‘I loved Nick Brendon more, but, man, excluding Norris, who delivered the meat and potatoes that kept lights on at CBS for eight years and 196 episodes, is some real disrespect.’
‘How the hell do you omit Chuck frickin Norris!? He literally led his own 9-season show,’ questioned Jason K.
However, some suggested that the omission may have been due to Norris’s right-wing politics and vocal support of Donald Trump, whom he endorsed during the 2016 election.
The In Memoriam section this year was a lengthy affair, taking up over 10 minutes of the broadcast. It does not typically include everyone who died over the course of the past year, given the time constraints.
Other stars omitted were Daveigh Chase, Patrick Muldoon, Jaye P. Morgan and Peter Cullen.
The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences website has its own In Memoriam section, where fans can read about those who were not featured in the ceremony, including both Norris and Brendon.
The televised In Memoriam section this year started with a moving tribute to Catherine O’Hara from three of her on-screen children: Macaulay Culkin, Dan Levy and Annie Murphy.
The Schitt’s Creek star died on January 30 at the age of 71 from a pulmonary embolism following a cancer diagnosis.
Culkin, who played her son in the first two Home Alone movies, referenced those infamous plots in his tribute. He said: ‘She may have forgotten me… twice. But we will always remember her.’
Jamie Lee Curtis also paid an emotional tribute to late director Rob Reiner, who she described as ‘generous and kind and funny as hell’.
She added: ‘We all miss Rob, and Michele, and all that we lost this year.’
Reiner, 78, and his wife Michele Singer Reiner, 70, were found dead from apparent stab wounds in their home in Los Angeles last December.
Metro contacted The Emmys for comment on this story.